Cameron, which displayed equipment at the 2013 OTC in Houston, ranked No. 8 on the top companies list.

Cameron, which displayed equipment at the 2013 OTC in Houston, ranked No. 8 on the top companies list.

Photo: Cody Duty, Staff

How the companies were ranked

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The information in this section is drawn from many sources. Data for the Chronicle 100 chart and others based on financial results of publicly traded Houston-area companies were collected and analyzed by S&P Capital IQ.

The Chronicle developed the criteria for the rankings. Data used in charts and profiles primarily reflect performance as reported by public companies to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The tables used numbers reported for calendar years 2011 and 2012, or as close as possible to the calendar year for companies with different fiscal years or reporting schedules. Data may reflect restatements for accounting changes, acquisitions or discontinued operations.

Other information in the section was gathered by Chronicle researcher Katherine Feser, who surveyed companies to determine the area's biggest employers, grocers, privately owned businesses, hospitals and law firms.

Chronicle 100 scores

Companies based in the Houston area were ranked by a score based on four categories for 2012: total revenue, earnings-per-share growth, annual revenue growth and one-year total return to shareholders on a dividend-reinvested basis.

The companies were ranked in each of the criteria with each category given equal weight. The best possible score in each category is 1. To calculate the overall score, the four ranks were added and then divided by 4. If there was a tie, the change in earnings per share was used to break it.

To qualify, a company must have reported a profit for 2012 based on diluted net income per share before extraordinary items.

The company's stock price must have been above $1 per share as of March 31, 2013, and it must have been trading for all of 2012.

Companies must have had total sales exceeding $5 million for 2012 and $2.5 million for 2011.

The Chronicle 100 was derived from a list of 128 companies that met the criteria.

General criteria

To qualify for charts based on financial performance of publicly held companies, a company must be traded on a major stock exchange - New York, Nasdaq or NYSE Amex - and have its headquarters in the Houston area. Some companies with dual headquarters, primary administrative offices or major operations in the area were considered.

Companies with overseas headquarters were included if their CEOs were based in Houston.

Revenue was defined as net sales for 2012. In most cases, sales exclude excise taxes and other non- operating income.

For banks and savings and loans, revenue equals total current operating revenue and net pretax profit and loss on securities.

For insurance companies, revenue equals the sum of earned premiums and net investment income. It excludes equity in other investments and foreign currency adjustments.

Earnings-per-share growth was based on the percentage change in the earnings per share before extraordinary items. EPS growth can include one-time gains or losses, such as profits on asset sales, as long as they are reported before taxes on income statements.

Where the earnings-per-share number in the previous year was negative, the percentage change was calculated using the absolute difference.

Largest companies

This chart ranks companies by annual revenue. To be considered, companies had to be publicly traded on Dec. 31, 2011, and have met other criteria for Chronicle 100 chart consideration.

Market value

The market value chart ranks companies by the value of their stock as of March 31, 2013. Market value is the company's stock price multiplied by the number of outstanding shares. The number of shares is based on the most recently available information. To be considered, companies had to be publicly traded on Dec. 31, 2011, and have met other criteria for Chronicle 100 chart consideration.

IPOs

This chart shows companies tracked by S&P Capital IQ that had an initial public offering of shares from January 2012 through May 2013. The companies are ranked by the value of the offer amount. The current market capitalization may include additional shares issued in subsequent offerings and/or private placements. Two spinoffs from other companies also are shown in the chart.

Revenue growth

The revenue growth chart ranks companies by the annual percentage gain in revenue in 2012.

Auto dealers

Car sales were provided by InfoNation, which publishes market information about area car dealers in its TexAuto Facts Report. The report is compiled from vehicle title records maintained by the Texas Department of Transportation. Reports include new-vehicle sales from title records processed in the 10-county Houston region and all sales by dealers in the region if titled in Texas. Sales of cars titled in other states are not included.

Vehicles purchased by other commercial buyers (such as companies) are included in retail sales. Vehicles leased directly by dealers to retail customers are included in retail sales.

Certain dealers do not report dealership locations on title records; therefore, sales records are not available.

Banks

SNL Financial ranked bank holding companies and commercial banks based on deposits in the Houston area as of June 30, 2012. Data is pro forma for acquisitions that had closed or been announced as of April 24, 2013.

Employers

Companies were ranked by the number of full-time and part-time workers they employ in a 10-county area comprising Harris, Montgomery, Liberty, Chambers, Galveston, Brazoria, Fort Bend, Waller, Austin and San Jacinto counties.

The companies supplied the numbers, some of which are estimates, for a Chronicle survey.

Some of the companies hire contractors, who are not included in the total employee count.

Some major employers, such as Wal-Mart Stores, Hewlett-Packard and Macy's, are not on the list because they do not provide employment numbers by city.

Government entities are generally not included. Some public health care institutions are part of the survey.

Grocers

The list of grocers is based on a survey of stores. Wulfe & Co. provided store counts for Wal-Mart and Sam's. Some information was collected from company websites.

Homebuilders

Sales figures for homebuilders and housing starts for the most active communities were provided by Metrostudy. Homebuilders were ranked by Houston-area sales that closed during 2012. The fastest-growing communities were ranked by housing starts in 2012.

Hospitals

Area hospitals provided information about their Houston operations. The Chronicle requested the latest information available.

Law firms

The biggest law firm chart is based on a Chronicle survey of the firms' operations.

Private companies

Companies were ranked by revenue based on a Chronicle survey. In some instances, companies provided estimates. Auto dealers and lawyers' and doctors' practices were not included.

Residential real estate brokerage firms

Real Trends compiled the ranking of the top 34 residential real estate brokerage firms in the Houston market based on the number of closed transactions in 2012. The list was derived from companies that applied to the Real Trends 500 magazine ranking that were in the Houston market. The firms were ranked by the number of closed transaction sides in 2012. A transaction is defined as one home sold. When counting transactions sides, one counts both the listing and the selling side of a transaction. The sales volume is counted in the same way. For information on the company, visit realtrends.com.

Retail construction

Wulfe & Co., a Houston-based commercial real estate brokerage, development and property management firm, provided a list of the 10 largest retail additions that opened or are planned to open in 2013 in the Houston area.

Tech companies

The Chronicle asked the Houston Technology Center to compile a list of hot startups to watch. The chart highlights 24 of the companies.